June 14, 2022 02:49 PM UTC

Ron Hanks Makes Lemonade Out Of CBS4's COVID Policy

• 1 Comments
• by: Colorado Pols

A television debate between the two Republican U.S. Senate candidates Joe O’Dea and Ron Hanks scheduled for yesterday evening at the CBS4 Denver studio didn’t take place, and as Hanks explains in a video from the state capitol afterward, it’s not due to Hanks’s unwillingness to go toe to toe with his opponent–rather the prospect of anyone sharing close indoor quarters with the proudly COVID-cardless Hanks:

How much more are we going to give? We’re done–we’re done surrendering to this weaponized government.

It seems unlikely to us that nobody at CBS4 would have been aware of Ron Hanks’ famously anti-vaxxer views to have planned for this highly predictable predicament well before Hanks showed up for yesterday’s debate. That raises the question of whether this last-minute denial was more of a gift to Hanks’ opponent Joe O’Dea, who is on the defensive and bitter about not having cleared the primary field, than a bonafide health precaution. If you’re going to host a debate starring an anti-vaxxer, it’s on the organizer to work these details out. Have him appear remotely–or maybe in a bubble?

Don’t get us wrong, we wouldn’t want to share closed airspace with Hanks either.

But if the goal was to make Hanks look bad with Republican base voters ahead of the upcoming primary election, we suggest not looking at the comments on Hanks’ video:

Because this is exactly the kind of “resistance” that rallies the faithful to Hanks’ cause. Making hay over being excluded from this debate could be worth as much to Hanks as having participated.

Say what you will about Hanks–O’Dea would prefer you say as little as possible–he knows his audience.